Soldering-another problem

Several weeks ago I posted a question about soldering feeder wires. I follwed advice from Keith R starting with buying a 48 watt gun. Everything was working fine, actually getting quite good at it and not melting any ties. Then last night I started having problems. I just can't get the solder to properly melt and flow at the tip on the gun. I have been wiping the tip on a wet sponge after use, so I think I was keeping it clean. This is a really dumb question, but can a tip wear out and have to be replaced? Nothing else makes any sense.

John

 

John:
Have you checked the tip to make sure it is tight? I don't know what type of iron that you have. If you have a pencil type it may well be that the tip is loose in the element. Another thing it might be is plastic residue from the melted ties that may need to be scraped off. I use an Xacto knife to accomplish this. These are just a couple of things that are easy to check.
Bob Wintle

 

John,
A tip can get carbon build up from being repeatedly used. A good way to tell if your tip is operating properly is to hold a piece of solder to the tip and wait for it to melt. If the solder melts and coats the tip with a "shiny" coat of solder, then the tip is good. If the solder looks dull and scaly then the tip is not getting hot enough and should be replaced. Also, I have noticed that some of the new formulas of solder that uses a silver and tin mixture instead of the old fashioned lead/tin mixture does not melt as easily because silver requires a higher heat in order to melt. I suspect the tip is dirty and not getting hot enough. Try using some fine grit emery cloth to remove any carbon build up. Clean the tip until it looks shiny again and it should work fine.